Meaning

(Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, Lutheranism, Eastern Orthodoxy) An administrative part of a diocese that has its own church..

Definitions by Sense

1. (Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, Lutheranism, Eastern Orthodoxy) An administrative part of a diocese that has its own church.
2. The community attending that church; the members of the parish.
3. (US) An ecclesiastical society, usually not bounded by territorial limits, but composed of those persons who choose to unite under the charge of a particular priest, clergyman, or minister; also, loosely, the territory in which the members of a congregation live.
4. In any of various countries, an administrative subdivision of an area, often of a county.
5. (transitive) To place (an area, or rarely a person) into one or more parishes.
6. (intransitive) To visit residents of a parish.
7. Pronunciation spelling of perish, representing Mary–marry–merry merger English.

Example Sentences

Near-synonym: vicarate

With some of it on the south and more of it on the north of the great main thoroughfare that connects Aldgate and the East India Docks, St. Bede's at this period of its history was perhaps the poorest and most miserable parish in the East End of London.

[…] [m]akes possible, through the aid of the rural ministers, the development of the various phases of the District program, such as (a) Parishing of the District; (b) Interdenominational adjustment in the interest of rural religious advance […]

Father Malachy, a distant cousin, who was parished somewhere in the depths of Co. Monaghan, sat firmly in the chair in the corner, sipping his tea from a china cup.

Consequently, approaching half of the non-metropolitan population of England is parished (Table 2.2). […] The South West and East Midlands are also particularly well parished while the North West, West Midlands and South East are poorly parished.

Dr Whitehead: In your written evidence, you have all in different ways made the distinction between NDOs in parished areas and NDOs in non-parished areas, […]

[…] a chair immediately opposite to Tressady's place remained vacant. It was being kept for the eldest son of the house, his mother explaining carelessly to Lord Fontenoy that she believed he was "Out parishing somewhere, as usual."

"You will take pleasure in parishing. Mother used to parish." "How do you know I like parishing?" "Your uncle said so." "Oh! did he?" "And you may like the rectory people; it's a fine old house, and often full of visitors."

Word Forms

• parishes
• paroch
• parishing
• parished

Synonyms for parish

Related Words

When Should You Use Parish?

Use parish when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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